Have you ever noticed a soft instructional message appearing above a field or field group, guiding you on what to enter?

These small hints improve clarity and make data entry smoother and more intuitive.

This behavior comes from a very useful and often underutilized AL property called InstructionalText.

In this blog, let’s understand what it is, how it works, and how you can make your Business Central pages more user-friendly using this property.

What Is the InstructionalText Property?

The InstructionalText property defines the short message shown inside a page field or on a request page to help users understand what to enter.
It acts like a placeholder or helper message, improving usability and reducing data-entry errors.

If you leave this property empty, no guidance is displayed.

Where Can InstructionalText Be Applied?

You can use the InstructionalText property on:

• Page
• Request Page
• Page Field
• Page Group

And it supports the following field data types:

• Text
• BigText
• Code
• Guid

This makes it suitable for fields where users typically require hints or sample values.

Available Parameters

The InstructionalText property comes with a few optional parameters that enhance how the text behaves.

1. Locked (Boolean)

If set to true, the instructional text is treated as fixed and should not be translated.
This is useful when the text contains named entities, technical terms, or example values that must remain unchanged.

2. Comment (Text)

A descriptive note used mainly for translators.
You can use this to explain the meaning, usage, or translation requirements of the instructional text.

3. MaxLength (Integer)

Defines the maximum allowed length for the instructional text.
This is useful for controlling UI layout or maintaining consistency across fields.

Why Is InstructionalText Important?

Modern Business Central apps are expected to be intuitive. Users should not need to guess what to enter in a field. InstructionalText helps:

• Reduce onboarding and training effort
• Lower the chances of wrong or incomplete entries
• Improve the overall setup experience within pages and wizards
• Align with Business Central’s user-assistance model

AL Code Example: Simple Instructional Text

Opened a page in Business Central and Noticed the instructions. 

AL Example with Parameters

This example adds restrictions for translation, comments for clarity, and maximum length control.

The InstructionalText property is a simple but powerful tool to enhance user experience in Business Central. Whether you are designing setup guides, wizards, or complex data-entry pages, using meaningful instructional text helps users understand fields instantly and ensures smoother navigation throughout the application.

Start integrating this into your AL development to build cleaner, more intuitive interfaces.

Thanks For Reading...!!

Regards,

Khushbu Rajvi